Home reno/redecorating support group

[quartz]

"Baby stuff is so obnoxious"

 

[algonquin]

Bumping this up. Any words of advice before starting bathroom renovations? We will be hiring contractors. I plan to get two to three quotes.

 

[made_in_canada]

Bumping this up. Any words of advice before starting bathroom renovations? We will be hiring contractors. I plan to get two to three quotes.

Hiring contractors seems like a step in the right direction No advice though. We haven't tackled our bathroom yet though my husband is itching to tear it apart. Thank goodness there's no money for that

 

[quartz]

Plumbing = $$$$$

 

[algonquin]

Plumbing = $$$$$

Keeping the plumbing footprint should help, I think. The water here is so hard that I am not tempted by high end faucets or shower heads.

 

[quartz]

How's the bathroom reno going, @algonquin?

We have begun to work on our upper hall, stairwell and mainfloor hall (all connected) I ripped the fugly, old lady carpet out of this area about 5-6 years ago, and pulled out 2000 staples (not exaggerating) and sanded and slapped a coat of primer on the steps. Last fall my husband refinished the floor in the upper hall, and we will be painting the steps black and white. I had chosen a very soft periwinkle color for the walls, but my husband said "more BLUE??" and I just and tried to show him that it was a pale purple, but because I am the Queen of Compromise (curses) I showed him a pale grey instead and he liked that better. But you just watch me throw handfuls of glitter in that grey paint, let me tell ya!

Anyways, I am choosing new light fixtures for this space - will get 2 very simple flush mount lights for the upper and mainfloor hall, but I want something more bold for the stairwell itself. So far I have 2 selected, one is a more Art Deco/Moderne drum style pendant light with 5 horizontal bands of polished nickel. Very appropriate to the space and lack of color scheme. The other is a rustic, cottagey type chandelier of aged iron metal with just the right amount of prisms, and more vertical rather than horizontal in shape, so it will fit the space well and not look like it should be over a dining table.
Both are well under my budget and both will look great in the stairwell, but they are so entirely different I'm not sure what to choose! Thoughts??

 

[Kruss]

I'm thinking perhaps the rustic, cottagey type as a fun pop of detail.

 

[algonquin]

@quartz Two contractors have been in and now I am waiting for their quotes. Their renovation ideas are very similar. We have two bathrooms that need to be renovated. I would like to do them both at the same time, but husband wants to do one now and the other down the road. Not sure which would be more cost effective.

For your light, I'd go for the Art Deco.

 

[skatesindreams]

Not sure which would be more cost effective.

Could you ask the contractors?

It's my guess that it would be better to do them at the same time, while you have the manpower available.
Sometimes, you can get discounts on materials and labor as a "package deal".

 

[algonquin]

@skatesindreams Sorry, yes we have asked the contractors to quote both.

 

[algonquin]

Oh, I forgot to mention that I want all white bathrooms with white tile, white vanity, white floor, etc. Maybe a little bit a grey in the tile work, but I will accent with colour. The walls main bathroom are a lovely grey. I will keep that colour and probably go a slightly lighter shade in the master.

 

[quartz]

Lol...love how @algonquin is loving her grey and I'm all pissy and grumbly about having to go buy grey paint for my hall and stairway.
So, if both your bathrooms were to be under renovation at the same time, where would you pee??

Although the rustic chandelier is far more my style, I am leaning toward the Art Deco light, as I think it will suit the monochrome ( ) decorating scheme of that space. I will go to the paint store after work tomorrow, and get the most silvery shade of grey possible. That's the only way I can deal with this.

 

[algonquin]

We have a powder room on the main floor. It is the shower that is a concern. Perhaps, they could do one shower at a time or we will have to shower at friends.

The grey in our bathroom was chosen by a decorator. At that time, I would not have picked grey on my own. It was so pleased with her choice.

 

[made_in_canada]

I can't get on the grey bandwagon. I know it's really trendy right now but it does nothing for me. I know there's warm greys but I still find it cold. Especially grey cabinets, or grey floors.

This weekend I'm starting to put together the baby's room Which really just means painting the rocking chair that my mom used with me and assembling a dresser for now. But I'll feel better if things are put away and finish it up when the crib and blinds come.

 

[quartz]

I know someone who decorated her entire house in greys and browns. No color at all. Looks great if you like living in a house that has all the personality of a bowl of porridge.

I will be getting grey paint chips after work today.....

 

[skatesindreams]

I'll be interested to see what shades of grey/silver you find/choose, quartz!

 

[amy8]

@quartz Two contractors have been in and now I am waiting for their quotes. Their renovation ideas are very similar. We have two bathrooms that need to be renovated. I would like to do them both at the same time, but husband wants to do one now and the other down the road. Not sure which would be more cost effective.

I'm sure it's more cost effective to do both at once but from my experience it's nice to have at least a functional toilet and/or shower because renos tend to go longer than expected.

 

[KCC]

We will be renovating the master bath shortly after we move into our next house, and I'm thinking of something like this for the shower: http://www.us.kohler.com/webassets/kpna/brochures/Choreograph_RecipeCard_SmShower.pdf. The wall panels are "engineered stone", not fiberglass. I saw this in a display at the dealer, and thought it looked nice (and relieved me of cleaning grout).

The design challenge is that the new shower will replace this huge tub, and there is currently a large window in that space. I need to feel confident that we could make the window smaller and tile & seal all the way around it to keep water from running down the inside of the wall.

I also don't know how it would look with a window cut out of the patterned wall. If it does not look right, we'll probably go with a large block tile.

 

[made_in_canada]

We will be renovating the master bath shortly after we move into our next house, and I'm thinking of something like this for the shower: http://www.us.kohler.com/webassets/kpna/brochures/Choreograph_RecipeCard_SmShower.pdf. The wall panels are "engineered stone", not fiberglass. I saw this in a display at the dealer, and thought it looked nice (and relieved me of cleaning grout).

The design challenge is that the new shower will replace this huge tub, and there is currently a large window in that space. I need to feel confident that we could make the window smaller and tile & seal all the way around it to keep water from running down the inside of the wall.

I also don't know how it would look with a window cut out of the patterned wall. If it does not look right, we'll probably go with a large block tile.

Oh I like that idea. I hate cleaning grout. Actually, I just hate cleaning tubs/showers.

 

[quartz]

Grey paint has been bought. Took 15 minutes with paint chips to choose. Normally I will play with paint chips for hours and hours before I get the right one(s), so this was a chore rather than fun. I have a box with hundreds and hundreds of paint chips, but all the grey ones, I returned to the paint store rather than keep.
I have found another light to consider - this one more a cross between the deco style and the chandelier. It's still a drum style, but instead 5 horizontal bands, it's got a sparkly material shade with dozens of random bands all crisscrossing over it. So it's got the more masculine shape to appeal to my husband, but has the sparkle and fun that appeals to me. And it's cheaper!

 

[algonquin]

We have been in this house for almost eight years and we are finally getting around to painting the yellow spare room. I can't describe the yellow other than it is a late 80's yellow and extremly intense. My sister gave us a gallon of a lovely light blue paint that will look so much better than the yellow.

When we moved in, my son's room had purple walls and thick green shag carpet. We replaced the carpet and painted the walls cream with an accent wall in Five Dollar Bill. I now think that that blue is rather young for him now. So, I might repainted the accent wall in a navy.

 

[quartz]

The husband and I are painting the hallways and stairwells. Together. So far so good!

 

[skatesindreams]

Pictures when completed, please!
I'd also like to see the light fixture you love.

 

[LilJen]

Keeping the plumbing footprint should help, I think. The water here is so hard that I am not tempted by high end faucets or shower heads.

Be tempted by a water softener. Seriously! When we moved into our house 12 years ago, it was 10 years old and EVERY faucet & showerhead was crusted over with lime. I replaced everything (faucets and showerheads are easy to do on your own) and we bought a water softener. Best investment ever.

 

[LilJen]

The husband and I are painting the hallways and stairwells. Together. So far so good!

I got my husband to "help" paint once. Never again. He figured the drop cloth gave him license to just splatter all over. . . uh, no, honey, sorry.

 

[algonquin]

Be tempted by a water softener. Seriously! When we moved into our house 12 years ago, it was 10 years old and EVERY faucet & showerhead was crusted over with lime. I replaced everything (faucets and showerheads are easy to do on your own) and we bought a water softener. Best investment ever.

We have one. We have very hard water in our city.

 

[JoannaLouise]

I'd also like to see the light fixture you love.

Me too! (Less than a month til we move. I think I'm going to have to start following this thread now... )

We have one. We have very hard water in our city.

Ugh. Here too. It makes my hair feel so gross. My dream is to have a water softener - it's one of the first things on the to-do list, along with finishing the attic.

 

[algonquin]

Ugh. Here too. It makes my hair feel so gross. My dream is to have a water softener - it's one of the first things on the to-do list, along with finishing the attic.

We replaced our softener two years and I wish that we had researched and shopped around more. I think that we bought one of the most expensive softeners out there.

When you get one, remember to add salt regularly. Something that we often forget to do.

I am very pleased with the blue paint in the spare room. It is a very pretty colour and looks wonderful with the white trim.

 

[quartz]

I now have grey walls in my house. I feel....boring.....

 

[algonquin]

I now have grey walls in my house. I feel....boring.....

What could colour was your first choice?